City set to raid La Liga yet again…
New Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini is desperate to sign Real Madrid’s Portuguese centre-half Pepe, and will bid £22m for the tough-tackling defender, reports The Daily Star.
Despite the fact Pellegrini has stated his desire to keep hold of English centre-back Joleon Lescott, the Chilean manager is keen to add Real Madrid’s 30-year-old defender to his star-studded squad.
A £22m fee has been mooted, which seems very high for a player in his thirties. Pepe lost a starting position to Raphael Varane last season, although it is yet be seen if new manager Carlo Ancelotti wants to partner Sergio Ramos with the young Frenchman ahead of Pepe this term.
Pellegrini managed the no-nonsense defender in the 2009/10 season during his one year stint as Real Madrid manager, and the Portuguese obviously impressed the Chilean.
For that kind of transfer fee, fans would expect Pepe to start alongside club captain Vincent Kompany at the heart of the defence, leaving the talented Matija Nastasic on the bench.
City have already spent huge money on La Liga duo Alvaro Negredo and Jesus Navas this summer, and have also turned to the Ukrainian and Italian leagues to secure Fernandinho and Stevan Jovetic respectively.
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